Angled Foot Rests for Post-Hole Digger Shaft Rigidity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional post-hole diggers do not effectively utilize leg strength for digging, leading to inefficiency and potential jamming issues due to long footrests that interfere with soil and create bending moments, and detachable parts can be inconvenient and easily lost.
Innovation Solution
A post-hole digger with short, angled footrests integrated into the shafts, allowing for symmetrical use and engagement to maintain rigidity and prevent jamming, while allowing for deep hole digging without soil interference, and featuring adjustable collars and gripping textures for secure foot contact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If long horizontal posts are used as foot rests, then the user can apply leg strength to drive the tool, but the foot rests interfere with the soil when digging deep holes and increase bending moments
Solution Approach 1:
The foot rest is divided into two separate portions attached to different shafts, with each portion independently positioned. This segmentation allows the foot rest structure to adapt to the tool's geometry and avoid soil interference while maintaining structural integrity for effective force application.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of extending the foot rest horizontally beyond the tool diameter, the invention positions the foot rest portions vertically along the shafts within the bore diameter. This dimensional change eliminates soil interference and bending moments while preserving the ability to apply downward force effectively.
2Strength
If detachable top plate assembly with reinforcement bar is used, then the shafts are rigidified when driven, but the assembly is inconvenient to repeatedly attach and remove and can be easily lost
Solution Approach 1:
The foot rest portions are permanently integrated into the shafts rather than being detachable. This merging eliminates the need for repeated attachment and removal, preventing loss of components, while still providing the necessary structural rigidity when force is applied during digging operations.
Data Source
AI summary
A foot rest for a post-hole digger and post-hole diggers using the foot rest are disclosed. The foot rest includes two portions, one attached to each shaft of the post-hole digger. The two portions have structure that allows them to engage one another when the two shafts of the post-hole digger are vertical. The foot rest does not extend beyond the bore diameter of the post-hole digger. Thus, in order to keep the user's feet on the relatively short foot rest, the contact surface of the foot rest may be angled. In some embodiments, the foot rest may be symmetrical, so that either side may be used as the upper surface. A post-hole digger including the foot rests typically includes at least two foot rests, spaced from one another and facing different directions along the shafts of the tool.